Sam Brownback's Background:
Sam Brownback is a Senator from Kansas. He has been in office since 1996. Prior to that he was in the House of Representatives, elected in 1994. He is a social conservative who considers Jesse Helms his role model.
Update:
Sam Brownback pulled out of the presidential race in October 2007.Employment Non-Discrimination:
Sam Brownback has not stated his stance on a federal non-discrimination law that would outlaw job discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Hate Crimes:
Sam Brownback worked actively to prevent the Local Law Enforcement Act from passing.
Same-Sex Marriage:
Sam Brownback opposes gay marriage and supports the Federal Marriage Amendment that would define marriage as only between one man and one woman. Senator Brownback also opposes civil unions and domestic partnerships.
Gay and Lesbian Adoption:
Sam Brownback's stance on gay and lesbian adoption is unclear.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell:
Sam Brownback opposes allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. When General Pace called homosexuals immoral, Brownback defended him saying, "We should not expect someone as qualified, accomplished and articulate as General Pace to lack personal views on important moral issues. In fact, we should expect that anyone entrusted with such great responsibility will have strong moral views."
More About Sam Brownback:
Sam Brownback chairs the Values Action Team, a coalition of groups from the religious right, including Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, the Christian Coalition, the Traditional Values Coalition and Concerned Women for America. According to Rolling Stone, "Working almost entirely in secret, the group has directed the fights against gay marriage and for school vouchers, against hate-crime legislation and for 'abstinence only' education."
In 2006 he blocked a Michigan judge's elevation to the federal bench because she had attended a family friend's lesbian commitment ceremony.
On his campaign website Sam Brownback says, "I believe that our society’s strength lies in its most fundamental building block, the family unit. Family begins with marriage. We must defend the institution of marriage by defending the definition of marriage. The right to marry is not the right to redefine marriage. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman. How we define marriage is vitally important because of the message it sends to the culture—to the young, and to the next generation of citizens."
Sources: Rolling Stone, Gay.com, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, MSNBC.
